If Pioli gets the job...

[Aloysius]

@jewdago said:

seems like he prefers to go defense early and then pick offensive players as necessary. some of that could be BB's influence, but it's still the trend he established while with the pats.

And it may be a coincidence, but all of their offensive Round 1 picks were towards the end of the round: the earliest were Maroney and Graham at pick #21.

When they had top 15 picks, they used them to bolster their front seven.

I hope we do the same.

[Squintz]

Curry is the pick at 5, but there is a big part of me that wishes they were drafting 10-12 so they would have to 'settle' for Maualuga. He's the guy I want on my team. Perhaps they could trade down, but we all should know by now that doesn't happen often or easily.

[PlaygroundLegend]

I want Maualuga...

But Pioli scares me in THIS YEARS draft...

Pioli likes character, well roundedness, versatility, and depth...

This makes me think he will trade down and grab Laurinitis

[Mr. T]

@playgroundlegend said:

I want Maualuga...

But Pioli scares me in THIS YEARS draft...

Pioli likes character, well roundedness, versatility, and depth...

This makes me think he will trade down and grab Laurinitis

that would be a good move, he would get a Football Player and not an over hyped flash in the pan. like we see from some of these guys out of week conferences. (big Fish in a little Pond)

[JewDago]

@playgroundlegend said:

I want Maualuga...

But Pioli scares me in THIS YEARS draft...

Pioli likes character, well roundedness, versatility, and depth...

This makes me think he will trade down and grab Laurinitis

or he'll stay put and take curry who offers true versatility. lauriantis is purely a 4-3 guy and maybe even a 4-3 WLB, at that. curry can play, so i've been told, any LB position in any scheme.

[pl4tinum]

Damn, his 2006 was pretty horrible.

[YtownBrownsBacker]

First I would hope that he would coordinate the draft with his HC and work as a team. We don't need the same kind of disconnect that we had with Savage and Crennel. The HC has to have a say and has to be comfortable with the player.

That being said, Curry can play in either system. I want to see Maluauga's combine and pro days. His numbers weren't really that great when you break them down. He is not a good coverage guy and he was surrounded by very good players that made him look better.

Then again, I would like to trade down because we have a lot of needs. I don't see a great difference in LBs from #5 to #15.

[BigBrownsFan]

@mr.-t said:

that would be a good move, he would get a Football Player and not an over hyped flash in the pan. like we see from some of these guys out of week conferences. (big Fish in a little Pond)

Are you f-ing kidding me??? Laurinitis is THE single most over-hyped player in the country. Period! Not even an argument. He is solid, but not as good as everyone makes him out to be. Hawk was better than him, and what, exactly, is he doing in the NFL? No sir, no Laurinitis for me.

[Tobalaz]

@jewdago said:

pioli took over as director of player personnel of the pats in 2001, then became VP of player personnel in 2002. since 2001, here are the pats' draftees from the first three rounds:

2001

richard seymour (de, 1st rd)

matt light (lt, 2nd rd)

brock williams (cb, 3rd rd)

2002

daniel graham (te, 1st rd)

deion branch (wr, 2nd rd)

2003

ty warren (de, 1st rd)

eugene wilson (cb, 2nd rd)

bethel johnson (wr, 2nd rd)

2004

vince wilfork (dt, 1st rd)

benjamin watson (te, 1st rd)

marquise hill (de, 2nd rd)

guss scott (ss, 3rd rd)

2005

logan mankins (og, 1st rd)

ellis hobbs (cb, 3rd rd)

nick kaczur (og, 3rd rd)

2006

laurence maroney (rb, 1st rd)

chad jackson (wr, 2nd rd)

david thomas (te, 3rd rd)

2007

brandon meriweather (s, 1st rd)

2008

jerod mayo (lb, 1st rd)

terance wheatley (cb, 2nd rd)

shawn crable (lb, 3rd rd)

kevin o'connell (qb, 3rd rd)

seems like he prefers to go defense early and then pick offensive players as necessary. some of that could be BB's influence, but it's still the trend he established while with the pats.

I'm not seeing late round picks in that list. Don't get me wrong, I like seeing just about every 1st through 3rd being a quality contributor to the team....

BUT...

I'm not seeing late round gems in that list like a "stellar" gm is supposed to glean and develop over a few seasons on special teams or the practice squad.

[Aloysius]

@tobalaz said:

BUT...

I'm not seeing late round gems in that list like a "stellar" gm is supposed to glean and develop over a few seasons on special teams or the practice squad.

The Pats haven't drafted many late round gems recently, but they've had more than a few.

2002:

• Round 4: Jarvis Green - would be a starting 3-4 DE on any other team
• Round 7: David Givens

2003:

• Round 4: Asante Samuel
• Round 5: Dan Koppen - their starting center

2005:

• Round 4: James Sanders - key member of their secondary
• Round 7: Matt Cassel

[Jantz2086]

Round 1. Curry

Round 2. LeSean McCoy - RB - Pitt

Round 3. Kevin Barens - CB - Maryland

[Aloysius]

@jantz2086 said:

Round 3. Kevin Barens - CB - Maryland

Not sure about Barnes. Reports before he got hurt were that he looked pretty stiff-hipped. And I worry about the bad shoulder injury he suffered:

Barnes, who injured his left shoulder Oct. 18 against Wake Forest, is nearly two weeks removed from surgery. The initial diagnosis sounded like a complete destruction of the joint --- torn labrum, torn rotator cuff, fractured collarbone, fractured shoulder blade. Turns out it wasn't nearly so bad. "Once he got in there, the rotator cuff healed itself in that week and a half," Barnes said. "The shoulder blade healed itself. They had to put a pin in my collarbone and they pulled up my biceps to anchor my shoulder so it'll never slide out of place again." That's a lot better than originally anticipated. As Ralph Friedgen would say, better to be pleasantly surprised than bitterly disappointed. Barnes begins his rehab process tomorrow, and will be out of a sling in another two weeks. While he could be back for the Senior Bowl if he really pushes things, it seems certain he'll be ready to go for the NFL Draft combine and other workouts well after New Year's. - Washington Times

A thing to add about Pioli: like Savage, he tends to draft DB's with elite short shuttle times.

James Sanders is a good example of that. Though he ran a mediocre 4.65 40 at his pro day, he also had an incredible short shuttle time (4.02). Pioli drafted him in the 4th Round, and he's developed into a key member of New England's secondary (and an interesting FA option for us this offseason).

[KardiacKid26]

Round 1. Rey Maulagala-LB

Round 2. Javon Ringer- RB

Round 3.(Trade Derek Anderson to Bears) CB

Round 4. Alex Boone- OT

We have no 5th round pick

Round 6. WR or DE

[Aloysius]

These things are a waste of time, but they're also fun to put together.

I'm assuming that DA is traded for a 3rd Round pick and Winslow is traded for a 2nd and a 7th.

Round 1: Aaron Curry, LB, Wake Forest

Similar to: Patrick WillisRound 2: Shonn Greene, RB, IowaSimilar to: Michael Turner (with less speed)Round 2: Eric Norwood, DE-LB, South CarolinaSimilar to: Parys Haralson (but also able to play ILB)Round 3: Antoine Caldwell, C-OG, AlabamaSimilar to: Eric HeitmannRound 4: Bear Pascoe, TE, Fresno StateSimilar to: Steve HeidenRound 6: Mitch King, DE-DT, IowaSimilar to: Tyler Brayton (but shorter)Round 7: Josh Pinkard, FS, USCSimilar to: Anthony Smith